Total War: Shogun 2 - Fall of the Samurai

PC

BAJOFor strategy fans and arm chair generals there arenít many games that rival the depth of the Total War games. And last yearís Shogun 2: Total War was easily one of the best games in the series. But now thereís a new stand-alone expansion for it, Fall of the Samurai...

DARRENStrategy games typically come in one of two flavours, thereís Real-time like Age of Empires or turn-based like Civilization. But the Total War series has made a name for itself by smushing the two flavours together into a delicious chocolatey-vanilla swirl sprinkled with a healthy dose of history...

BAJOMmm... historical sprinkles...

HEXYeah and while the original Shogun 2 was set way back in the 16th century, Fall of the Samurai fast forwards 300 years into 19th Century Japan. Guns and cannons are everywhere and the influence of foreign powers is growing, triggering the Boshin Civil War.

BAJOSo as you begin your campaign you have to choose your side, either fight to maintain the Shogunate, or fight to restore the Emperors rule over Japan. Whichever side you choose though, the old ways of the sword and the samurai are dying out and guns now rule the battlefield.

DARRENWell Bajo, while gun units have replaced archers, theyíre typically slow to reload and can be decimated by charging Samurai or cavalry...

BAJOYeah thatís true, and that makes for a pretty interesting mix of units and strategies. Itís kind of a happy middle ground compared to the gun and artillery units of Total War Empire and Napoleon with the more popular sword, spears and bows of Total War Medieval and Shogun.

HEXAnd it looks epic as thousands of units line up and start taking shots at each other. I loved how those clouds of smoke hang around and just slowly roll across the battlefield... but having said that you do need quite a powerful computer to run this on the higher settings.

DARRENI was also quite impressed by the enemy AI, enemy armyís line-up to meet yours and do their best to flank you with cavalry and cause chaos in your lines. It was quite a challenge for my own AI subroutines.

BAJOBut as with every Total War game, taking command on the battlefield is only a small fraction of the war effort. The real fight is one of healthy trade, careful resource management, thought out military campaigns and diplomacy.

DARRENAffirmative. And diplomacy is more important than ever. Allying with your fellow supporters of the Emporer or Shogunate is essential since your victory depends on which side controls the most provinces. Itís not just about you anymore.

HEXYeah, I really liked that, it just gives you clear enemies and allies which makes it feels much more like a full-scale war. And if youíre not using some smart planning and diplomacy here then you wonít stand a chance on the battlefield.

DARRENIndeed. And itís important to always keep an eye on your finances and taxes. Without a healthy economy your provinces will soon begin to riot, not to mention you wonít be able to recruit new units and further develop your provinces.

BAJOYeah, and every military unit costs a big chunk of gold to maintain so you canít afford to simply leave armies lying around guarding each province. Itís a real juggling act to keep your people safe and happy, your economy growing and your military strong.

HEXBut thatís all old news for the series. On the new side of things you can now develop railways to move armies around much quicker. Usually it takes a lot of turns to march anywhere so using railways and your navy to move around is essential.

DARRENNavyís are also significantly more useful now thanks to their ability to bombard land targets. They can cripple enemy infrastructure or simply chip away at armies in their range. In previous games you could almost ignore building a Navy but you do so at your own peril now.

BAJOYeah and if you go into battle when youíve got a fleet nearby you can call in for some devastating naval bombardment. Itís pretty over-powered but very satisfying, and if you have it then you can confidently take on armies twice your size.

HEXI also found the naval combat much more satisfying, mostly because of the new third-person mode which lets you directly take control of a ship or artillery units guns and aim them yourself. It just puts you that much more into the action.

BAJOYeah, thatís a great feature. And thereís also a new type of battle, the port siege. Basically if you try to attack an occupied enemy port then youíll have to fight their ships as well as their coastal guns...

HEXWell letís wrap this up Baj, final thoughts?

BAJOPersonally I prefer the old Shogun 2 units, thereís just something much more exciting about walls of flaming arrows flying through the sky while Samurai clash head on. But personal preference aside, it stands strong as its own game and as always thereís hundreds of hours of strategic bliss to lose yourself in, Iím giving it 8.5.

HEXYeah, the guns and artillery definitely add some new tactics into the mix which was the most important thing for me. And scheming up clever strategies to conquer the campaign map is as satisfying as ever, I loved it. So Iím giving it 9.

DARRENAnd just to be clear Spawnlings, this is a stand-alone expansion pack so you donít need to own the original game to play it.